Becoming a Composer
- Author: Wallen
Becoming a Composer weaves in poetry (an account of suicide runs without fullstops, for example) and stage work extracts, in parallel with the quirkier techniques heard in her music.
Becoming a Composer
- Author: Wallen
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Becoming a Composer weaves in poetry (an account of suicide runs without fullstops, for example) and stage work extracts, in parallel with the quirkier techniques heard in her music.
About
I am a composer. A composer of classical music. Quite honestly I am not quite sure how that happened to a girl born in Belize and brought up in Tottenham . . . It is clear that composing found me. It crept up on me and wouldn't let me out of its grasp.
Now a leading international composer and a singer-songwriter, Errollyn Wallen is as much at home in jazz and pop as in the classical world. Part memoir, Becoming a Composer offers an intriguing glimpse into the mind and motivation of a composer and covers aspects of Wallen's sometimes troubled childhood, and her experiences of growing up as a black composer in the UK. It includes a collection of observations, diaries following the progress of new works and essays and seeks to shed light on the way a composer sees and hears the world.
Contents
- Becoming a Composer
Awards and reviews
Becoming a Composer weaves in poetry (an account of suicide runs without fullstops, for example) and stage work extracts, in parallel with the quirkier techniques heard in her music.
In 2022, [Errollyn Wallen] was in the top 20 most performed living composers worldwide ... Part of [Becoming a Composer's] appeal lies in the way Wallen wears her talent so lightly .... [she] demonstrates that it was a potent combination of hard work, ability charm and tenacity that has enabled her to succeed despite not fitting the conventional idea of what a composer should be ... The best parts of Becoming a Composer are those that deal with the minutiae of creating music. Wallen is excellent at explaining exactly how she composes. She shares everything from the process of drawing sonic inspiration from her surroundings to her tendency to let deadlines loom before she puts a single note on paper, a habit that can make collaborators nervous... The diary extracts are brilliant at conveying this mixture of the sublime and the ordinary.
Becoming a Composer takes us on a journey from childhood to the present day though vignettes, diary extracts, poems and programme notes ...[Wallen] outlines a difficult childhood, where fear sat alongside laughter, and uncertainty and insecurity dominated ... she confesses, and details a teenage suicide attempt. Never once, though, does this feel like a sensationalist story. When speaking about her personal life, Wallen balances the toone beautifully between intensely personal, almost confessional writing, and more detached prose that gives a feeling of carefully considered distance. She is disarmingly frank about many of her experiences, but always maintains a sense of dignity and poise. Much of the book is astutely observed and poetically expressed ...It is obvious that Wallen is someone who truly loves what she does ... that sheer delight in creating comes across strongly ...Wallen manages to give a compelling insight into how she creates...she speaks eloquently about the state of contemporary opera. There is much here for opera lovers to reflect on ...
Becoming a Composer is a generous, warm-hearted book that all aspiring musicians should read.
